Swiss Army Artist: Crab Rangoon Recipe and Guide: How to Fold a Wonton

Here is one of my all time favorite dishes. It is also one of my cousin's favorites. I call these the 'Liz Rangoon' in honor of my cousin Elizabeth. I would love to share my recipe with all of you, and my technique of how to make these delicious appetizers/side dish.

Crab Rangoon

or the "Liz Rangoon"

Ingredients:

lump crabmeat

cream cheese

chives or green onion

eggwash = beaten egg, little water added,

(can omit yolk if desired.)

wonton wrappers

sweet chili sauce (for dipping as pictured)

vegetable oil/spray oil (for cooking later)

Mix ingredients together. I used about a 50/50 crab to cheese ratio. The best advice here is mix them, taste them and adjust to your liking. Use the chives or green onions also inside the mix. Omitting them is fine too. We can debate which kind of crabmeat is best to use. Usually I buy the lump crabmeat in a can from the grocery store for about $4.00 each. Id say 1 can and 1 8 ounce cream cheese (which is the normal regular Philly cream cheese container at the grocery store) for about $2.00 and of course, the wonton wrappers are about $2-3.00 for a pack you'll never use up before the spoilage happens.

Step by Step Photo Instruction for

How to Fold a Wonton

1. Pull one wonton per rangoon. Lay flat. Give the edge a wipe of eggwash to help seal. Just apply a small amount to 2 sides of the wonton.

2. Use a small teaspoon of mix. Drop into the center of the flat wonton. Do not overfill.

3. Wipe corners with eggwash. This helps seal the wonton and to give it a golden finish after cooking. Add little bits of eggwash to the spots indicated.

4. Fold both corners in, press down. Start with one corner, then press down on the other, leaving a point at the top of the wonton. Make sure the tip of the wonton is also sealed.

5. Close up: Push the edges of the triangle point in slightly to create a tiny pocket for the filling to rest. Then it should be ready to cook.

Then make more! I use a baking sheet with wax paper (wax not pictured) to keep the dough from sticking. Flour is not a good idea since it will change the texture when cooking. You can keep them on the sheet and then stick them in the fridge for a few minutes, if you were trying to perhaps save some time. Also, it helps to keep them sealed if dropping them in the fryer to put them in the fridge. I wouldnt store them for more than a couple hours max.

It takes me about 30 minutes to make about 20 of these little guys by hand.

I eat about 8-10 before exploding.

To Bake or to Fry?
Now that is the question...

The left: Baked

The right: Fried

It is all about preference, texture, and if you want to eat healthier or not. The baked side is a healthier version with a crispy crunchy shell. The fried side has a bit more flavor to the dough, and is also crispy but has a more tastier texture. I recommend frying, or doing both if you know someone is trying to eat healthier. Otherwise, I would not recommend baking them. The shell is thin and can feel painful to your gums when you chomp down on a bite.

To Fry:

Get your frying pan nice and hot with vegetable or canola oil. Dont try to be fancy and add chopped scallions to the frying part like pictured. :) Fry for a few minutes on each side until golden brown.